The suggestion that private prisons cost taxpayers more money to operate than state-run prisons is wrong. A recent Republic news article disclosed that the “non-adjusted” cost of housing a medium-security prisoner was $64.52 in a state-run facility and only $58.82 in a private prison.

When you further adjust these figures, as the nonpartisan Joint Legislative Budget Committee did, by adding in the high expenses of constructing the prisons and paying for the costly and grossly underfunded public pensions of state corrections employees, the private prisons become an even better deal for Arizona taxpayers.

The allegation that the Legislature and governor ended cost-comparison studies because they found private prisons more expensive is not true. The studies were stopped because they were misleading. For three years, the Arizona Department of Corrections repeatedly refused to include in their public-prison formula the construction cost and pension-liability factors mentioned above.

Because no study is better than a flawed and misleading one, we stopped the charade. In addition, prison costs are not volatile, so we still felt comfortable using the more complete and accurate 2010 JLBC adjusted figures on the DOC that demonstrate private prisons are less expensive.

The criticism of the guaranteed occupancy rate of 90 percent that the state includes in private-prison contracts is also unjustified. Montini inexplicably calls this communism. However, under communism, the state seizes control of private businesses and makes them government operations.

In this case, the guarantee enables a government operation to be privatized. That’s the opposite of communism.

Besides, what rational business would spend $50 million building a private prison for the state to house its prisoners without a guarantee from the state that it would use the prison? The contracts also call for the private-prison company to deed the prison over to the state after 20 years. The state then saves even more money because it then charges the private operator rent.

The charge that private prisons lack transparency is also bogus. All state contracts with private prisons require on-site state inspectors to have full access at all times, and we station three state inspectors at every private prison to ensure that the terms of the contract are fulfilled.

Can it get any more transparent than that? Maybe Montini would like to go undercover as a prisoner? I would love to arrange that!

Regarding the tragic and avoidable escape from the private prisonin Kingman, if one tragic incident provides a rationale for revamping an entire prison system, then we should have totally privatized Arizona’s prisons in 2004 after the state-run Arizona State Prison Complex-Lewis was the site of the longest hostage standoff between inmates and law-enforcement officers in U.S. history.

But wisely, we do not make major policy decisions based upon isolated incidents. The Kingman escape was just as much a black mark against the state Corrections Department because three state inspectors were stationed on-site and the facility was run by many retired DOC wardens and deputy wardens.

Finally, the baseless and illogical allegation that the governor and Legislature are creating a profit motive to lock people up in private prisons is offensive. Making such an unfounded and uncivil accusation is also hypocritical, coming from a newspaper that repeatedly editorially bemoans the lack of civility in public discourse.

Additionally, the private-prison beds currently under construction will relieve existing overcrowding. No new inmates are being “locked up” as a result.

The editorial’s claim that “guaranteeing occupancy to private operators creates a profit motive for locking people up” is bizarre, at best. Who does that motivate? I doubt it motivates cops to arrest more people or judges to send more people to prison for longer terms. Why would they do that?

The Legislature certainly has no motivation to send more people to prison at a time when our state budget is in dire economic shape. Nor has the Legislature engaged in sweeping penalty upgrades.

Incidentally, the Legislature is not focused on filling prison beds, as the editorial implied. One legislator considered early release for some prisoners several years ago, but we rejected that after our state prosecutors revealed that Arizona prisons are not overpopulated with non-violent drug offenders. A state law already diverts them into outside treatment in lieu of incarceration. Consequently, Arizona’s prison incarceration rate is only 75 percent of the national average based upon 2010 data.

The bottom line is that Arizona will continue to use private prisons under strict contract terms and state supervision because they have demonstrated they can do the job well, while saving taxpayers their hard-earned dollars.

Rep. John Kavanagh, R-Fountain Hills, is chairman of the Arizona House Appropriations Committee.

Posting a comment to our website allows you to join in on the conversation. Share your story and unique perspective with members of the azcentral.com community.

Comments posted via facebook:

► Join the Discussion

Join the conversation! To comment on azcentral.com, you must be logged into an active personal account on Facebook. You are responsible for your comments and abuse of this privilege will not be tolerated. We reserve the right, without warning or notification, to remove comments and block users judged to violate our Terms of Service and Rules of Engagement. Facebook comments FAQ

Join thousands of azcentral.com fans on Facebook and get the day's most popular and talked-about Valley news, sports, entertainment and more - right in your newsfeed. You'll see what others are saying about the hot topics of the day.